Cabinet spokeswoman Janira Hopffer Almada affirmed that the new schedule gives all public employees a seven-and-a-half-hour workday, with flexible entry times (between 8:0 am and 9:00 am) and a half-hour interval for lunch.
“Experiments carried out throughout the years, as well as recent studies, indicate the adoption of a continuous workday for Public Administration meets the needs of an administration geared toward development and increases its effectiveness and efficiency in satisfying the needs of citizens, businesses and families. What’s more, it gives workers and agents more free time to dedicate to their families, to studies and to culture.”
According to Almada, the Department of Public Administration has guaranteed that the conditions necessary to implement and evaluate the effectiveness of the new working hours are in place, and that a report will be elaborated with recommendations aimed at proposing any adjustments deemed necessary. “The new structure is to be applied to autonomous services as well as the public institutions, the State and municipalities throughout the country’s territory, with the exception of regions in which special working hours are already being applied,” she informed.
The new structure does not apply to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ services abroad, nor to the National Police and Armed Forces. Health facilities and educational establishments are also excluded from the new regulations.
Praia
